The Queen will no doubt be glad to see the back of 2021 – a difficult year which saw the death of her beloved husband Philip, her son Prince Andrew embroiled in a sexual assault lawsuit, and her grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle make damaging allegations about the royals.
And while this year should be one of her most memorable ever – as she celebrates her Platinum Jubilee in June to mark 70 years on the throne as the longest-serving British monarch ever – it looks certain to be tainted by imminent dramas set to unfold.
Prince Andrew has constantly been in the headlines after Ghislaine Maxwell – a long-term friend of his and the convicted sexual offender, the late Jeffery Epstein – was found guilty on charges of sex trafficking and grooming teenagers under the age of 17 to engage in sexual activity.
As Closer went to press, a judge was deciding whether there were grounds to go ahead with a civil court case brought about by one of Epstein’s victims, Virginia Giuffre, who alleges she was paid to sleep with Prince Andrew back in 2001 when she was 17 – something he strongly denies.
And reports claimed that, should the case go ahead, Andrew was considering settling outside of court, but that the Queen had refused to foot his legal bills, and there was “no doubt” that she would help him out financially. Reports then said Andrew was “trying to force the sale of his £17m ski chalet” in Switzerland to cover the costs, which could be up to £4m should Virginia accept.
This year will also see the release of a hotly-anticipated memoir written by Prince Harry – who stepped back from the royal family in January 2020 – which is tipped to contain more shock claims about life behind palace walls, following on from his and wife Meghan’s sensational tell-all interviews last year.
Check out: 11 soap stars who have been arrested in real life
Soap Stars Committed Crime - SLIDER with cover pic
1 of 12Soap stars committed crime
2 of 12Nick Pickard
Back in 2012 Hollyoaks' longest-serving actor Nick Pickard (who plays Tony Hutchinson) pleaded guilty to drink driving.After the actor was stopped by police, a blood test found that he was over the legal alcohol limit by 14 milligrams. He was then given a 12 month driving ban and fined £850. At the time his solicitor told the court: "He wishes to express his remorse and regret, and he acknowledges he made a grave error in judgement."He had consumed alcohol earlier that day. He thought the alcohol had gone from his system and he apologises."
3 of 12Leslie Grantham
From 1967 to 1977 EastEnders star Leslie Grantham, who is best known as Dirty Den, served 10 years in prison for murder. The horrific incident took place after the actor tried to rob a taxi driver in Germany, following the altercation the driver died from a gunshot wound to his head. Despite denying any knowledge that there were bullets in the gun, he was found guilty of murder and send to prison. Surprisingly during his time in prison he acted in plays with other inmates and even became friends with his former EastEnders co-star Louise Jameson following her visits to the prison.After going on EastEnders, leaving and then returning again he was later involved in a sex scandal after a newspaper printed X-rated photos of the actor from his dressing room. Following his behaviour he released a statement and apologised, saying: "I am wholeheartedly ashamed of my behaviour and feel that I have let down my colleagues, as well as my friends and family."
4 of 12Bruno Langley
In November 2017 Coronation Street's Bruno Langley (who is best known as Todd Grimshaw) was accused of acting inappropriately towards a woman on a night out. Shortly after he was dismissed from the show another sexual assault allegation came to light.After the actor was charged with the two counts, he was then accused by a 15-year-old girl of 'pursuing' her. The former Corrie star then pleaded guilty to the two charges and had to pay a £500 fine and a 12-month community order.He then released a statement where he apologised for his "disgraceful behavoiur" he went on to say: "I have absolutely no memory of what happened because of excessive alcohol consumption and it was for this reason that I behaved completely out of character."However, I take full responsibility for my actions that night."
5 of 12Joseph Shade
He played Ian Beale's son Peter Beale from 1998 to 2004 but Joseph Shade was spared jail in 2017 after admitting to sexual assaults against three teenage girls.After pleading guilty to the crimes of the three girls between the ages of 14 and 17, he was handed an 18-month sentence suspended for 24 months, a sexual harm prevention order for five years and 150 hours of unpaid work.
6 of 12Tim Dowd
In 2018 the Coronation Street cast and crew were shocked to discover one of their directors had been arrested for child grooming. Tim Dowd was caught after a police officer posed online as a 13-year-old girl.He has also worked on Emmerdale, Heartbeat and Casualty.
7 of 12Michael Le Vell
Back in 2011 Coronation Street's Michael Le Vell, who plays Kevin Webster, arrested however the Crown Prosecution Service decided to not proceed with the case.However, in 2013 following fresh allegations from the accuser he was arrested again. The girl (who at the time of the trial was 17) accused the actor of abusing her from the age of six until 14. He faced 12 charges which also included sexual activity with a child, causing a child to engage in sexual activity and indecent assault. He denied all of the charges and was later found not guilty. During the trial he did not appear in any of Corrie's episodes and after it came to light that he was innocent, he admitted outside the court that he was "delighted" and felt the result was "a weight off everyone's shoulders".Fast forward a few years and the actor has been declared bankrupt after having to pay out £200,000 in legal fees following the child abuse claims.
8 of 12Bill Roache
A few months after Coronation Street's Michael Le Vell was arrested so was his co-star Bill Roache.The Corrie star, who plays Ken Barlow, was accused of raping a 15-year-old girl in 1967. However things got worse for the actor as he was then charged with two counts of rape and then five more counts of indecent assault against children between the age of 12 and 16.He pleaded not guilty to all of the charges and after three weeks at the trial he was found not guilty. After thanking everyone for their support, he said in a statement: "In these situations there are no winners, and I think we should all be much kinder to ourselves."
9 of 12Leanne Lakey
From 2001 to 2003 she was known for playing Belinda Slater in EastEnders but years after being in the BBC soap she accused of attempting to smuggle three kilos of cocaine into the UK.The actress was arrested at Gatwick Airport in 2016 after the class A drug was found hidden in the bottom of her suitcase.A year after the arrest, and Leanne Lakey was found not guilty after there was no evidence against her.
10 of 12Jody Latham
He played EastEnders' Rob Grayson (Whitney Dean's pimp) but in 2011 actor, Jody Latham, was arrested for growing cannabis. Police seized 24 plants from him.However, he managed to avoid jail with a 12-month sentence suspended for two years. In 2016 he was also accused of harassing a contestant on The Apprentice but was later cleared.
11 of 12Ben Freeman
He played Scott Windsor in Emmerdale but actor Ben Freeman has previously been accused of raping a girl he met in Barbados while on holiday.Following the accusation he was 'released' from his contract and after denying the allegations he was found not guilty.
12 of 12Linda Henry
In 2015 EastEnders starLinda Henry - aka Shirley Carter - was accused of racially abusing a warden. The incident was said to happen after the actress was told off by the accuser of dropping a cigarette bud on the floor.She denied the claims and was later found not guilty.
And the Queen’s former footman, Paul Burrell, tells Closer that she’ll be devastated that what should be a monumental year for her will be overshadowed.
Paul – who worked for the Queen before his 11 years as Princess Diana’s butler and “rock” – says, “This should be a wonderful year for the Queen, and there’s no doubt she’ll be looking forward to the Jubilee enormously. But I’m sure she’s also very aware of what’s in store. The year will be bookended by two very difficult events for her.
“In January, we have all the drama surrounding Andrew and, towards the end of the year, we’ll have Harry’s memoir, no doubt with more intimate bombshells. It’s heartbreaking. I’m sure she’ll be very apprehensive about the year ahead, and other royals – especially William and Kate – will step up to support her more than ever.”
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Harry’s memoir – the first part of a multi-book deal he and Meghan, 40, signed with Penguin Random House last year – is one of many lucrative collaborations the couple have made since resigning as working royals to start a new life in the US in January 2020.
Harry has said that the memoir – due this autumn, though some reports say sooner – will detail, “My story, the highs and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned”. It follows his and Meghan’s interview with Oprah Winfrey in March last year, which sent shockwaves through the “The Firm” after they openly accused a senior royal of racism, alleged Kate Middleton had “upset” Meghan, and claimed the family ignored mental health struggles that had left Meghan suicidal.
Harry, 37, also described his brother Prince William and father Prince Charles as being “trapped”, and said he wanted to “break the cycle of pain and suffering” of a royal upbringing. He added that life in the royal family was like a “mix between [film] The Truman Show and being in a zoo”.
Harry took further shots at the royals during his mental health podcast for Apple TV+, again alongside Oprah Winfrey, during which he revealed he was told to “just play the game” within the royal family, and accused them of “neglect” when it came to protecting Meghan.
The royals were said to be “livid” over the couple’s comments – with William in particular reportedly “furious” with his brother, and the pair are still said to be barely speaking.
Meanwhile, royal commentator and biographer Katie Nicholl – who wrote William And Harry: Behind Palace Walls – predicts more eyebrow-raising interviews from Meghan and Harry, and more stress and sadness for the Queen.
Katie tells Closer, “The book will no doubt be full of more intimate and shocking revelations – Harry wouldn’t have got a multi-million pound advance without promising some juicy details. And in the build up to that, I imagine Harry and Meghan will have a carefully thought out publicity drive, which will see them drip-feed teasers in the months building up to the release. There’ll be more shocking claims to come, perhaps their biggest yet! I’m sure the Queen has a lot of anxiety over that and the royals will be braced for more bombshells.”
Paul, 63, adds, “I think it is abundantly clear that now is not the time to be writing a tell-all book about the royal family, with all the Queen is going through. It will be the ultimate betrayal. Surely Harry will see what this has done to his family and find it within himself to cancel the book, or postpone it. Even though he has stooped low in the past, he adores his Granny and surely he’ll realise it’d be too much for her.
“Hopefully, this year Harry and Meghan will lay down their swords – at least for the time being. They must not cause any more drama for the Queen – she’s been through enough.”
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Meanwhile, in another twist, Virginia Giuffre’s lawyer David Boies last week claimed that, if Prince Andrew’s trial were to go ahead, Meghan could even be brought to the stand to testify against her uncle-in-law. He said, “One; she is in the US so we have jurisdiction over her. Two; she is somebody who obviously, at least for a period of time, was a close associate of Prince Andrew… Three, she is someone we can count on to tell the truth.”
But Paul tells Closer, “I don’t think Meghan would go to court and get involved in Andrew’s case, purely because of her ego and her brand. I don’t think she’d want anything to do with this at all. She wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole. If she were to testify, that truly would be it for her and Harry. There would be no chance of a reconciliation and the rift would never be healed. Let’s hope Harry and Meghan have it within them this year to leave the drama aside for the sake of the Queen.”